Write Tools 101~ September 21-22, 2009
Due to popular demand, we will offer Write Tools 101 a second time. This is the basic writing workshop for K-12 teachers. These two days are the groundwork for all other training modules for Write Tools. It includes strategies for: responding to reading, building better sentences, planning before writing, expository paragraph writing, emphasis on the full writing process, correlations to reading, and connections to Six Traits of Writing.
Write Tools for Personal Narrative ~ Oct 13, 2009
In this workshop, we focus on writing that helps students tell the important stories from their own lives. This workshop, geared to grades 3-8 teachers, covers:
*Essential attributes of personal narrative
*Planning a personal narrative
*Writing a strong introduction
Write Tools: Descriptive Writing ~ Oct 14, 2009
Write Tools for Descriptive Writing provides teachers with the necessary tools to improve word choice and integrate strong description in all types of writing. During this day, we will look at the characteristics of descriptive writing, teaching figurative language through poetry, improving vocabulary, writing Role Audience Format Topics (R.A.F.T.), and improving sensory details in writing. We will also look at a variety of graphic organizers to address prompts that call specifically for strong description. This module is excellent for all ages as a follow-up to The Write Tools 101.
Write Tools: Multi-Paragraph Writing and Compare/Contrast Essays ~ Oct 15, 2009
In this workshop, we expand on the multi-paragraph strategies introduced in the basic training. Teachers learn specific methods for helping students plan and organize a well-constructed essay, including the all-important introductory/thesis paragraph. We also apply what we've learned to the compare/contrast paragraph and essay. We introduce a variety of mini-lessons, reading materials, and models for helping students become proficient with this genre that strengthens higher-level thinking.
Write Tools for Active Reading Strategies ~ Feb 03, 2010
As teachers, we ask students to prove their learning by writing about the informational text they are reading. Often times, grade-level text is difficult for some students, which means that the writing assignments sometimes feel like an impossible challenge. In this workshop, we use a variety of active reading strategies that help students learn to read more carefully and interact with information they are reading. This leads to an improvement in reading comprehension, which in turn makes writing to improve learning achievable.
The Write Tools for Research and Report Writing ~ Feb 04, 2010
Write Tools for Research and Report Writing provides teachers with the necessary tools to help students complete a strong research paper. During our training we will discuss topic selection, selecting sources, the note-taking process, organizing and planning the paper, citing Modern Language Association (MLA) sources, and constructing a works cited page. This proven process will result in outstanding papers even if it’s a student's first experience.
This module is a follow-up to The Write Tools 101, and prior experience with the multi-paragraph module is also helpful. The training is mostly geared for grades 3-12, but some primary strategies are briefly discussed.